Watching with a purpose
A live show happens once and the actors do not stop for notes. So prepare: decide what to watch (one dancer, the lights, the set changes), and write short keywords during or just after the show. If the show is filmed, you may watch it again, stop it and compare moments; this is how students study works and also their own filmed compositions.
The five elements to describe
- Body: movements, speed, level (high or low), shape, energy, gestures and facial expression.
- Space: where performers stand and move; patterns on stage; close or far apart; the set.
- Light: colours, brightness, spots, shadows, changes at key moments.
- Sound: music, voices, silence, rhythm, sudden noises.
- Costume (and set): colours, fabrics, props, what they say about the characters.
Describing means facts only: "A dancer in red moves slowly to the left under a single spotlight while a drum beats steadily."
Interpret and judge with evidence
Interpretation says what an element could mean: slow steps and a lowered head may show sorrow; sudden red light may show danger. Several meanings can be right if you can point to the evidence. Judging says how well the choices worked for the idea of the show. Use the pattern point, evidence, effect: "The slow lights made the quiet scene feel lonely, so the ending was moving." Avoid empty words like "nice" or "boring" without a reason.
Creative process, motifs and the maker's signature
A show is built through a creative process: an idea, research, trying movements or scenes, rehearsal, changes, performance. A motif is a small movement, image or sound that returns and links the show together. A choreographer or director often has a signature: choices that appear in many of their works, such as floor patterns, very slow lifts, or unusual lighting. Spotting the signature helps you compare their works.
Stage and audience, filming and comparing productions
The stage-audience relation is how the performers and the spectators face each other: a classic stage with a curtain, a stage on three sides, a circle with the audience around, or a street. It changes how close and how involved you feel. When a show is filmed, the camera and the editing choose what you see (close-up or wide, cut or long take), so judge those choices too. To compare productions of one play or dance, list the same elements for both, say what is alike and different, and say which choices served the story better.
Try it: review a clip
Watch any 2-minute dance or theatre clip. Fill a 5-box table (body, space, light, sound, costume) with facts only. Then add one interpretation and one judgement with a reason. Finally swap with a friend and compare: did you notice different things?
Key formulas and definitions
- Method: Watch, Describe, Interpret, Judge (W-D-I-J)
- Five elements: body, space, light, sound, costume or set
- Judging pattern: point + evidence + effect
- Motif = a small repeated movement, image or sound
- Signature = choices that repeat across one maker's works
- Stage-audience relation = how performers and spectators face each other
Worked examples
1. Turn this opinion into analysis: 'The dance was great.'
Add evidence and effect. For example: 'The dancers moved in a tight circle and then broke apart on a drum beat, which made the sudden loneliness at the end feel strong.'
2. Write a description (no opinion) of a scene: two actors, blue light, silence.
Two actors stand far apart on a dark stage under cold blue light. Nobody speaks and no music plays.
3. A motif of one raised hand returns three times in a dance. What can you say about it?
It is a motif that ties the dance together. Each return may change in meaning, for example from greeting to warning to farewell, and you can say what the changing context suggests.
4. Two productions of the same play: one in a theatre with a curtain, one in a circle with the audience around. How might the audience feel differ?
In the circle the audience is closer and can see each other, so they may feel like part of the event. Behind a curtain and a frame they feel more like observers of a picture.
5. Why should a reviewer of a filmed dance judge the editing as well as the dance?
Because the camera and cuts decide what the viewer sees and when. Quick cuts can break the flow of a long movement; a wide shot can show a pattern a close-up would hide.
Common mistakes
- Giving an opinion before describing. Always collect facts first.
- Using vague words like 'good' or 'boring' with no reason from the show.
- Retelling the whole story instead of analysing choices (light, space, sound, body).
- Thinking there is one correct meaning. Meanings can differ if the evidence supports them.